Argosy All-Story Weekly, October 25, 1924 — page 75: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE DANCING DOLL. caps with huge visors, on their heads. Some had even added a black mask or a hand- kerchief with slitted eye holes to look like real gun men. With a red sash improvised from a table cover, and a gay colored bandanna knotted | about the throat the most fastidious young swell of Rio was easily transformed into a roughneck, : And in the way Pedro’s friends swung their partners in the wild tango, it was easy to see that they felt at ease in their cos- tumes. Their lady companions, most of them originally from Paris or Brussels or the night clubs of Vienna, fell into the role as if they enjoyed it. It meant nothing to them to shorten their skirts by tearing off a foot around the hem and to slash the silk to ribbons so as to look like ragamuffins. Pedro was rich and paid well for his whims. They would all go home with gold enough for six new dresses. Some selected narrow silken masks which the servants had found among old costumes -and the women declared they were girl bandits. So the party that George stared at from the summerhouse was as riotous as any- thing in the gutters of Paris, a dance of holdup men and wild gamines, with their host stalking about in their midst, trailed by six or eight women who shrieked ribald remarks as they swayed across the floor. Valdez had his head bound with a red bandanna, a broad sash held up his trousers and in its folds he carried a huge kitchen knife, borrowed by way of a pleas- antry from the cook. George noticed with satisfaction that he himself had added to the piratical effect by a cut on the cheek where his fist had landed. It was patched with black sticking plaster over the purple bruise. But in spite of that Valdez was in good spirits. The insult in the café was forgotten for a while, and as a lavish host he went about the hail, stopping now and then to open a champagne bottle with his own be- jeweled hands and fill the glasses of his guests. Occasionally, to prove that he was a daredevil with flashes of wit, he would tilt a foaming bottle over the brassy head of oA 65 one of his fair friends, and then the whole party would break into wild hand clapping and yells of admiration. Pedro Valdez was a grand boss! He certainly knew how to give a party! While George was quivering with impa- tience to break in and take this millionaire thug by the throat, he restrained himself. Valdez could wait! He had come for Mar- got and he strained his eyes for any sign of the girl. All at once his throat contracted. He had caught sight of Guy Dalby, wearing -only a pink striped shirt above his check- ered trousers. For headwear he sported the brim of his straw hat from which he had cut away the crown so that it stood out behind his ears like a halo. As Guy came from an anteroom, he looked at Valdez with a rueful face and despairing gesture. Valdez answered with a scowl and sent him back with an impera- | tive movement. As the door closed behind the song-and-dance man, George made swift preparations to join the party. He threw off his coat and collar, and opened his shirt. He made a mask out of his handkerchief and pulled his cap far down over his eyes. By the time he had rolled up the shirt sleeves on his muscular arms he felt that he would be an ornament to Valdez’ little affair, He only stopped long enough to transfer the automatic from the coat pocket to his trousers before he ran across the lawn and climbed the nearest balcony. From the balcony he merely had to step through the open window. In a moment he was among a knot of young fellows gath- ered about a champagne cooler. George kept edging toward the door where Guy Dalby had disappeared, but be- fore he reached it the song-and-dance man had reappeared, staggering a little with the effects of Pedro’s hospitality. He was scowling back into the anteroom and all at once with an impatient jerk he dragged in a girl by the arm. It was Margot! Her hair was disheveled and her dress torn, but in that crowd where everybody wore rags, that was not conspicuous. The difference was that while the women who COMMICLOOolkKs (E@)